better intercooler

[zmatt]

So as we all know the OE intercooler is a stinking POS. Well, while looking on benzworld for some other stuff I came across this;

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/r170-slk-class/1393510-intercooler-install.html

It's an R170 SLK, but form what I can tell they have the same front and IC more or less. The stock IC is definitely the same unit. For comparison sake here is a C230k

http://i1115.photobucket.com/albums/k541/Monkeymagic2/cooler.jpg

and this is an R170 with the aftermarket IC

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/attachments/r170-slk-class/191459d1219260808t-intercooler-install-intercooler-084.jpg

The company is CXRacing and what I think is the correct IC (judging by dimensions posted and pictures from them and the OP) can be found here;

http://www.cxracing.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=CXR&Product_Code=IC0035&Category_Code=INCO

[Yujin]

Wow,

You read my mind ZMatt, I think I am going for an IC upgrade, along with hoses or hose covers (The metal kind) to reduce heat in the engine bay. Heat reduction with the setup I have will need all the cold air it can get. I'll just have to play it by dime and nickel.

[gakz]

What you need is an intercooler with 28x7x2.5" approximate dimensions or smaller, if its any longer than 28 you will not have enough room for the inlet/outlet bends

[zmatt]

well good thing that's how big it is. I think we got lucky there. It's a universal intercooler and happens to fit in a lot of things.

[Yujin]

Thanks gaks, That just saved me a ton of time haha

[Yujin]

I hear intercoolers on a c230K is useless because of the "Naturally aspirated engine". And the 14 psi it gives out. Any ideas?

[zmatt]

whoever said that is a moron. naturally aspirated means it isn't turbo or supercharged. it's just NA. Our engine is not naturally aspirated, it is forced induction. Going off of what our British friend was able to accomplish with water injection it is fair to say that we have some massive heat issues with the air coming in. The intercooler is pretty lame and I don't know about you guys but for me shit gets hot down there. A better FMIC would definitely help. it would keep the air cooler and raise the boost at the intake manifold. Especially considering how cheap these intercoolers are and how they appear to just be drop in units I can't see why you wouldn't want to use one. I have a friend who runs a CXRacing intercooler on his 4AGZE swapped AE86 and it works great for him.


Yujin, I can get a bit more indepth in explaining how it all works if you want.

[Yujin]

I'd like to read more on it if you dont mind the typing, Im all about new info on my car. If the IC can be installed without fabbing custom shit, I'll be more than to purchase one.

[gakz]

The only stuff needed: A few 4-6" long metal brackets with bolts to hold the intercooler, and the silicone inlet and outlet portion (I have 2 90 degree ones) to connect it to the rest of the piping/intake.

[Yujin]

Where might one purchase so called 4 - 6'' metal brackets with bolts? Lolz

[MikeD]

Sounds like another trip to the Home Depot :cool:

[Yujin]

Sounds like another trip to the Home Depot :cool:

Trollface.jpg

[gakz]

My cxracing intercooler came with the "bolts" that attach to the top, I had to custom do the brackets... just out of some 1/4" metal pieces

[zmatt]

Gakz has it, you only need silicone couplers and some brackets. Most people get em fomr the hardware store or what they have laying around and rig it.


As for how an intercooler works first I need to explain better why heat is bad. When we talk about making more power in our cars what we are really talking about is getting more air and fuel into the cylinders and igniting it more efficiently. This efficiency is called volumetric efficiency. Our engines run off of fuel mixed with air, so more fuel and air = more boom. Burning the same fuel and air you already have = more boom. Putting a turbo or a supercharger on your car is one way to get more air into the engine. Using "forced induction" as it is called is in fact the best way to get more air into your engine. The maximum volumetric efficiency of a boosted engine is much higher than an NA could ever hope to get. Case in point, look at formula 1. In the 1980's they ran 1.5L twin turbo V6 engines that could make 1200hp, now a days an F1 car *only* makes 700hp from a 2.4L naturally aspirated V8. Even though it's 20's years alter, and we have better technology and the engine is a full liter bigger, the Turbo monsters of Senna's time made much more power than the V8's of Vettel's time.

So you are using a supercharger or turbo to get more air into your engine for more power, there are a few problems you have to overcome. One is fuel delivery. Not matter what power you are making you always want a 14:1 air/fuel ratio in your engine. Any more air and you run lean and you can have detonation, and less air (or more fuel) and you run rich and you are wasting fuel. That's why when you crank the boost you see people upgrade the fuel pressure regulator to send more fuel. or if they really get more boost like Pagz, they install bigger fuel injectors and a better fuel pump. For what we are doing, yuo don't have to do that yet. The ASP pulley upgrade only involves a fuel pressure regulator upgrade. So you don't need a better fuel system unless you get a bigger blower or go turbo. The second problem is heat. Turbos and superchargers make a lot of heat. There is a reason the C230K has 3 cooling fans. No air is denser is lower temperatures, so the cooler your air the more you are getting in for the same psi so the more power you get. The way you cool the air or "intake charge" is through a few means, a co0ld air intake, a good intercooler, and water/meth injection.

Now our British friend Stavros didn't upgrade his intercooler, most likely because he didn't know about CXRacing or had access to an intercooler that can fit. But he did try water injection. His first system didn't work, but the second one worked quite well and he reported much better power. This confirms what we already suspected; our stock intercooler is shit and we have a lot of hot air coming into the engine. Reaplcing the stock cheapo unit with a better one that has a larger surface area will drop temps quite a bit and if you were to measure the air coming in to the throttle body before and after it would likely go up a few psi. In other words it would feel like you cranked the boost, because you were no longer loosing as much pressure from heat.

[zmatt]

Gakz has it, you only need silicone couplers and some brackets. Most people get em fomr the hardware store or what they have laying around and rig it.


As for how an intercooler works first I need to explain better why heat is bad. When we talk about making more power in our cars what we are really talking about is getting more air and fuel into the cylinders and igniting it more efficiently. This efficiency is called volumetric efficiency. Our engines run off of fuel mixed with air, so more fuel and air = more boom. Burning the same fuel and air you already have = more boom. Putting a turbo or a supercharger on your car is one way to get more air into the engine. Using "forced induction" as it is called is in fact the best way to get more air into your engine. The maximum volumetric efficiency of a boosted engine is much higher than an NA could ever hope to get. Case in point, look at formula 1. In the 1980's they ran 1.5L twin turbo V6 engines that could make 1200hp, now a days an F1 car *only* makes 700hp from a 2.4L naturally aspirated V8. Even though it's 20's years alter, and we have better technology and the engine is a full liter bigger, the Turbo monsters of Senna's time made much more power than the V8's of Vettel's time.

So you are using a supercharger or turbo to get more air into your engine for more power, there are a few problems you have to overcome. One is fuel delivery. Not matter what power you are making you always want a 14:1 air/fuel ratio in your engine. Any more air and you run lean and you can have detonation, and less air (or more fuel) and you run rich and you are wasting fuel. That's why when you crank the boost you see people upgrade the fuel pressure regulator to send more fuel. or if they really get more boost like Pagz, they install bigger fuel injectors and a better fuel pump. For what we are doing, yuo don't have to do that yet. The ASP pulley upgrade only involves a fuel pressure regulator upgrade. So you don't need a better fuel system unless you get a bigger blower or go turbo. The second problem is heat. Turbos and superchargers make a lot of heat. There is a reason the C230K has 3 cooling fans. No air is denser is lower temperatures, so the cooler your air the more you are getting in for the same psi so the more power you get. The way you cool the air or "intake charge" is through a few means, a co0ld air intake, a good intercooler, and water/meth injection.

Now our British friend Stavros didn't upgrade his intercooler, most likely because he didn't know about CXRacing or had access to an intercooler that can fit. But he did try water injection. His first system didn't work, but the second one worked quite well and he reported much better power. This confirms what we already suspected; our stock intercooler is shit and we have a lot of hot air coming into the engine. Reaplcing the stock cheapo unit with a better one that has a larger surface area will drop temps quite a bit and if you were to measure the air coming in to the throttle body before and after it would likely go up a few psi. In other words it would feel like you cranked the boost, because you were no longer loosing as much pressure from heat.

[Pagz]

If the SLK is the same as the C than they have trimed off the under side of the front bar,removed the original bumper brakets and fabed new. Looks tidy and is more or less exactly what i have.

The OE IC's with plastic end tanks look like the flow much better than the cast alloy ones which have been designed to flow arount he AC core pipes,geez why did they not just shift the pipes^^.

[gakz]

my flow is a pretty smooth piece now, custom aluminum welded, i dont have a lot of good pics available right now but can get some in a month. Those A/C lines are a pain though

[Pagz]

OE alloy left side tank

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/2943/3161/7356580013_large.jpg

[zmatt]

That's an odd bend, the SLK guys didn't have to cut anything, or so they say and they bought some silicone tubing and metal couplers online. Nothing that can't be sourced from autozone.

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/attachments/r170-slk-class/191457d1219260719-intercooler-install-pict0207k.jpg
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/attachments/r170-slk-class/191460d1219260829-intercooler-install-intercooler-111.jpg

[Pagz]

From your pictures it looks like the SLK lower bumper brackets are different to the 202,you might have to cut'em.
edit: and it looks like the slk doesnt have the seam under the impact bar,you might have to cut that too.

[gakz]

I ordered piping and silicone pieces off siliconeintakes.com, You are correct on the SLK we had no cutting, just pulled some plastic pieces out.

[Yujin]

Well, I blew some money on some other mods, so the intercooler will have to wait a while, and thanks for the explanation Zmatt! I read the whole thing ;)

Zmatt, if you do install this thing on your C230K, let me know, take pics through your adventure. My one concern is if I will have to buy a new bumper or not. Pagz, got any input on that?

[zmatt]

Will do. I won't order it for a few weeks. But when I do I'll be sure to document it.

[Yujin]

Whats the good word?

[zmatt]

I'm finishing up the autox season and I just started my senior year at college so it's a hectic time of the year. I will probably be doing it within the next few weeks.

[Pagz]

My one concern is if I will have to buy a new bumper or not. Pagz, got any input on that?

Pretty sure the stock bumper will not house that IC...Could look a bit like bugs bunny,I will dig up an old photo of mine with stock bumper cut out to clear.

Cheers,
Paul

[zmatt]

I wonder if you can fit an slk bumper, or if the amg one can hold it.

[Pagz]

Here ya go,pretty sure the middle part doesnt fit,and if you did stretch it the IC would hang out the bottom.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/2943/3169/7356584048_large.jpg

[zmatt]

lol that wouldn't sit well with the family. I guess i need a second bumper.

[Pagz]

Agreee'd ;)

I ran it like this for literally a week to see how the new IC was working,then ordered the Lumma.

Was gutted i cut the original bumper back then as it was worth good money second hand 6 years ago.

[horgantrevor]

why did you not fix it plastic weld

[Pagz]

Because the center was removed then ground back to fit the tanks.

[zmatt]

Pagz, what's the dimensions of your intercooler? Our bumper doesn't look too different from the slk one and they fit fine, is it possible your's is just that much bigger?

[Yujin]

You werent kidding about bugs bunny teeth lmao. Hmm, I'll have to consider buying a bumper and if I want to go any further with body mods. Im sure with just the exhaust upgrade, my cars value just depreciated lol

[zmatt]

It's not like they are worth a lot as it is.

[Yujin]

Well, I may plan in the long run to salvage the car for around 5K CASH MONEY! for maybe an E55 AMG or w/e else I can dig up... I was looking at that C43 for sale, it haz mah attenshunz

[Pagz]

Yeh i think its best to get another bumper,or just make a custom IC size to better suit the stock.

The core dimensions of my IC are 195h x 600w x 60d (I think the tanks are 70d) ,All my piping was 60mm.

[zmatt]

well your's is a bit taller and longer, but not as thick as the CX racing one. If I can find the time, I will take some measurements and find the largest size that will fit.

[gakz]

yea that looks quite a bit bigger than the one I have, your best bet is to get the intercooler you want... then try it, and if it doesn't fit perfectly get a bumper after the fact

[zmatt]

I'd think the best bet is to find one that fits so you don't have to spend a few hundred bucks on a new bumper. Too bad we all cant be like my roommate and have an evo with it's massive bumper just begging for a large fmic.

[Yujin]

The better bumpers come from over the pond in the UK. *Le Sighz* damn Mercedes and their lack of Aftermarket parts.

[zmatt]

Just and update guys. This afternoon I will be talking with the guy who made my exhaust about a better intake and possible intercooler mods. We will be taking the bumper off and making measurements to find what the biggest IC you can fit is. Then Sunday I'll be running the benz in Autox for the first time with the intake and I will be able to see how it stacks up. I'll be running in the stock tire category so the only thing that will be different is intake and exhaust.

[Yujin]

Sweet, I look forward to the results. Be sure to push past the kickdown point on the gas pedal. Perhaps a video or two :D...

I was driving in the student parking lot at school, which is a 5-decker, I could hear the damn whining from the supercharger and the deep hum from my exhaust. I floored it a few times and the echo's are sweet. My friends think its pretty badass.

[zmatt]

My apartment complex sits above a parking garage and everytime I leave I do some pulls down the straight bits. weeeeeeeeeeee psssht. Quite awesome. My buddy has a Gopro, he may let me use it for a run. If they give us enough runs I'll try a few for speed and a few to drift it. They always have a long sweeping corner in front of the judge's trailer called the "showcase" corner. Everybody tries to drift it. Last time an MR2 got about 20 degrees of slip and held it.

[zmatt]

by the way, anyone have a guide to removing the front bumper? my fabricator wanted me to figure out how to remove it quickly to he didn't have to spend all day messing with it.

[zmatt]

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j185/mbwhite/autoxbenz.jpg

So got back from 5 runs Sunday. The stock fuzion tires and the stock suspension were a big let down. So I'm going to have to address that before the spring. The car is super stable though and handling is pretty neutral. And when you power over the drifts come easy and are cake to control. Shit hurts your time though lol. I don't have the video yet since I was borrowing a GoPro. But when I get the files from my friend I'll upload em.

[Pagz]

Cool look forward to seeing the vid...hopefuly it turns out ok - gopro's take seriously average footage^^(well mine does) if its a dry day than use the suction cup with a cheap camera and muffle the mic.

[Yujin]

Oh man! How were your track times? Cant wait for the video. I may be hitting up the track in the spring as well.. I have a... few more things I wanna do ;)

[zmatt]

My times were not bad for someone who is new at it and has shitty all season tires. People were saying with the tires and suspension the best i could hope for would be a 50 on this track and i got a 52.something so I did all right. The biggest problem aside from the grip is me. I am waaaay to aggressive. I was sideways a lot. Which looked cool but hurt my times bad. I could hear the announcer say "well that was smokey" when I got done with one of my laps.

[Yujin]

Snap. The closest raceway is in NH, and is only a quarter mile. :/

I need to come out your way Lol, racetracks blow out here.

[zmatt]

That's not a track, that's a drag strip. We don't have any real tracks that are closer than an hour drive. AutoX uses parking lots mostly. The courses are small and speeds rarely get above 60. That's why Miatas always win lol. On a real race track they would get destroyed, but in AutoX or "Solo" as the SCCA calls it, they run circles around Corvettes and Porsches.

http://www.scca.com/about/?cid=44660&r=ne

You seem to be in the New England region. Also, Lime Rock which is a world class track is not too far away. They likely have club racing events there and maybe the regional autox championship there.

[Yujin]

Welp, Its a 2 hour ride from Boston, which I guess isnt bad?

This is my next trip than Lol. Hopefully i'll have some new toys in my car by than ;D

[zmatt]

if your car is anything like mine, you may want to look into getting the limiter removed if you are running on full sized tracks. I can hit the 130mph limiter really easy.

[Yujin]

Damn, that costs 2G's to get rid of from MB dealership.

[zmatt]

Yeah i think you are better off getting the chip from powerchip. Its 20hp and 20trq. And probably a bit.more with our mods.

[horgantrevor]

the limiter should be set to 155 mph as its a gentle mans agreement in germany that all cars made in germany must not exceed that speed unless you sign a waver and pay a small bill

it can not be that much for a w202 to remove the limiter in the US can it

[zmatt]

US spec 202s are limited to 133. Because the oem tire has a lower speed rating. I beleive the AMG models are limited to 155 here.

[Yujin]

Yeah, it costs 2,000 to remove the limiter, last time I checked.

Zmatt, where is the video?! Im dying in anxiousness over here Lol. Powerchip/Upsolute seems like the way to go, but with that chip, brings more things like pulley and all that other crap I dont have money for.

[zmatt]

Well you dont have to pulley. Im debating whether its better to chip and pulley for decent gains or go all out and save for a turbo. The guy still hasnt emailed me the video. He works long weeks so its hard to get a hold of him.

[Yujin]

I thought about a Turbo App, but that will kill my wallet im sure. I am saving up for an E55 AMG and hopefully I wont have to sell my C230K, so i can turn that into my project/weekend car. Yeah, its backwards xD

[zmatt]

My long term plans for this car is once I have a different DD this will be converted into either track use or drifting. But for the time being my mods have to have an ounce of sanity. Also, you can get a good E55 for about 26k. They are a great deal.

[Yujin]

im going for somewhere in the >10K, 2000 E55. I found one for 5K, 2000 E55 with 130K miles on it. Only reason why I didnt snag it, obviously, was the fact I had my car, and would have to sell it to buy it. But now, it's grown on me, I wanna keep it. Im also thinking if I cant get an E55, E430 is my next choice :D

[zmatt]

An E430 can't do a 12.3 second 1/4 mile.

[Yujin]

Very true, I'll just see how lucky I get and what I can find. I will say this... the E55 is an amazing car. So stately, with an engine that can fuck shit up!

[zmatt]

I have a better idea.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/96-99-BENZ-Halogen-W210-E55-AMG-Engine-Motor-Clip-/320676649028?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4aa9d15844

buy this and drop it in the 202.

[Yujin]

*droools*.. Wish I had the money for that, the transmission, the other shit that it will need and the money to drop it in. As a matter of fact, I wish i had money haha.

[Yujin]

OH SNAP, I didnt even see the bottom part haha, The whole thing!!! UGHH!!!! Lol, Carbon Fiber engine coverings. Omg... fuck school, who needs an education.

[zmatt]

I've done a little research in the past hour. The engine the C43 AMG uses is called the M113. it comes in 4.3 5.0 and 5.5 liter versions. They all use the same mounts (ie: c43 mounts are the same as e55 mounts) and are packaged more or less the same. The 4.3 and 5.0 engines are very common and not at all expensive. The 5.5 AMG motors can be found for a good price as well. There are actually two E55 motors on ebay right now for less than 3 grand and are complete. if you can get a full motor and transmission the swap would mostly be there. Note that stock brakes and suspension would hate you. So either amg suspension or aftermarket stuff (koni, bilstein etc). A lot of lines would need to be redone as well like the fuel line once it gets in the engine bay. You will also need a new exhaust fabbed. If we assume $3k for full motor and transmission then I would say 5 grand getting it in the car assuming the suspension stuff was already done. Of course if you can score a cheap front clip then your life would be so easy.

[Yujin]

6 - 7K. for everything it would seems, shocks, suspension etc.

Yeah, I think once I get me an E-class, AMG or not, I'll turn my C230K into my project car. I would love to throw that badass 5.5 into my baby girl. Forget Turbo, 5.5 AMG !!!

Thanks for sharing your research, I'm sure I will be looking back to this in the future when I do go through with it. Of course, It will be some time/years. But I should get the ez stuff out of the way (shocks, suspension, etc)

[hvmercy]

W210 E55 for sure. I've had one for many years now.
Swapping a 55 motor into your existing W202 I don't know about that. If your W202 is a C43 then it's basically a plug and play type of deal (but it may not be easy).

Last thing, GO to School, everyone needs education.


OH SNAP, I didnt even see the bottom part haha, The whole thing!!! UGHH!!!! Lol, Carbon Fiber engine coverings. Omg... fuck school, who needs an education.

[Yujin]

Haha,

My revised plan is Education = Degree * $$.

Now Mathematically, we can solve my money problem by doing this...

$$ = Education * Degree

But of course, anyone who has gone to school will know that...

Degree = $$ * Education.

[hvmercy]

Read this thread. The OP is a young lawyer.

http://mbworld.org/forums/c36-amg-c43-amg-w202/350409-started-tear-down-paint.html



Haha,

My revised plan is Education = Degree * $$.

Now Mathematically, we can solve my money problem by doing this...

$$ = Education * Degree

But of course, anyone who has gone to school will know that...

Degree = $$ * Education.

[zmatt]

The c43 is still a w202. There is nothing drastically different from it. heck if you look at a picture of the engine bay everything aside form the motor is exactly the same. the fuse box, wiper fluid bottle, ignition module etc are all in the same place. In a similar way the M113 motors are all about the same externally in their dimensions and placement of accessories and mounts. the 5G tronic transmission while it can have different ratios and the amg ones are strengthened are all still the same shape and size and bolt up the same. That's the great part about the "if is aint broke" policy. No reason to change the way everything is done from car to car.

Now I'm not trying to make light of this, a V8 swap is a big deal and would take weeks even if you knew what you were doing. You have to run a lot of new hoses and re run all of the wiring to your instruments, the list goes on. But as far as I can tell there isn't any good reason why one couldn't do this. It shouldn't require any cutting, special tools or fab beyond having some hoses made, and most of those you can probably order direct from MB.

[hvmercy]

Not gonna disagree with you there. I'm saying it's easier and far more less expensive if it was.
If you have the money to burn, go for it. Since I don't have the the time to invest in it, I took the most cost efficient way
of upgrading and that is I bought myself a W210 E55 almost 5 years now.

I bought my C230 brand new for a premium price than what you folks have paid for yours. I also paid premium for my E55 therefore
the only upgrade I'll put in it is OEM Euro springs, BBS LMs and perhaps a Brembo big brake kit. My E55 is Mocha Espresso Designo edition.
JRE320 have seen both of my MBs.


The c43 is still a w202. There is nothing drastically different from it. heck if you look at a picture of the engine bay everything aside form the motor is exactly the same. the fuse box, wiper fluid bottle, ignition module etc are all in the same place. In a similar way the M113 motors are all about the same externally in their dimensions and placement of accessories and mounts. the 5G tronic transmission while it can have different ratios and the amg ones are strengthened are all still the same shape and size and bolt up the same. That's the great part about the "if is aint broke" policy. No reason to change the way everything is done from car to car.

Now I'm not trying to make light of this, a V8 swap is a big deal and would take weeks even if you knew what you were doing. You have to run a lot of new hoses and re run all of the wiring to your instruments, the list goes on. But as far as I can tell there isn't any good reason why one couldn't do this. It shouldn't require any cutting, special tools or fab beyond having some hoses made, and most of those you can probably order direct from MB.

[Yujin]

Whats the good and bad from the Badboy 55? I am seriously considering getting one next summer If my funds can take it. I know my dad will flip shit if I buy a second benz (unofficially my 3rd one).

Idk, Im a modder. I love screwing with my car. As 'perfect' as the E55 may be, you can bet that I will find someway to improve it, whether its looks or performance, I will find a way. Theres not really a big market I suppose? for people who mess with their E-class's. Unlike the W202, the W210 seems to retain its classyness (besides the rims and lights) nothing else is really changed.

[hvmercy]

Yujin, open up a different thread about your question. This is getting way out of topic.

Apologies to the OP.


Whats the good and bad from the Badboy 55? I am seriously considering getting one next summer If my funds can take it. I know my dad will flip shit if I buy a second benz (unofficially my 3rd one).

Idk, Im a modder. I love screwing with my car. As 'perfect' as the E55 may be, you can bet that I will find someway to improve it, whether its looks or performance, I will find a way. Theres not really a big market I suppose? for people who mess with their E-class's. Unlike the W202, the W210 seems to retain its classyness (besides the rims and lights) nothing else is really changed.

[zmatt]

I'm the OP, we can keep it going here if you guys want. I'm having the bumper measure for the intercooler next week so we have some time until I make a major update.


I'm with Yujin. I love to improve things. The M113 is a great motor, it has forged internals stock. But in classic Mercedes fashion they have way under rated it for a long life. And It's definitely worked, of all the people complaining about tings in these cars breaking, one you never hear about is the motor. It's always the electronics. From where i am sitting 5-6 grand to do a V8 swap isn't expensive at all. Now I'm not rolling in cash, I'm a college senior and soon to be small business owner, but people put that kind of money into cars all the time and compared to the price of a new sports coupe or sports sedan it's very reasonable. The E55 does 0-60 in 5 seconds for the NA model. Just think what that motor would make the W202 do.

To put my madness in perspective. I was picking the benz up from my fabricator yesterday for the new intake I had him make. Another guy was there who had a 470 ish hp saturn sky. As far as we can tell its the most powerful sky anywhere. He has had a lot of custom stuff done obviously, he went beyond what the off the shelf stuff could do over a year ago. They were working on some new boost fittings to clean up the engine bay and to improve reliability. I was talking to them while this was going on and my fabricator says that I should just stop where I am and toss on some nice wheels, tint it and go VIP or something. It's a benz why are you talking about tuning when nobody does it? I say that's the whole point. Our community is mostly made up of middle aged guys who buy an AMG and dont know shit about their car and they never track them. When i went to autox you'd be surprised the props I got for bringing a benz. Nobody had done it up to this point. he said I should get a 240sx or something and put money in to it, or if I wanted to stay euro get a BMW. I don't think he gets it.

[Yujin]

Yeah, see, I hate when people say "Just get XXX instead of hooking up your car" wheres the fun in that? Lol. Im not looking to get 20000HP with 2000TQ, I just want to have fun with my car and enjoy doing little things to it. Just like Pagz, he turbo'd a C230, he could have easily gotten an AMG or even some import and spent money on that, but turbo'ing a C230 is somewhat of a rare sight (although costly). Another example is Slammed, he has all those cars, but he turbo'd his C230. Its all in pleasure and a hobby I suppose.

I cant wait to take my car to the track, hopefully next year.

[Yujin]

Update zmatt?

Yeah, Im that guy that just bumped this topic up.

[zmatt]

Well they have extended our AutoX season by two events because a lot were canceled so we had one this last sunday and another will happen in the next few weeks. I wont be able to do it before then but if i can find the time I will get the bumper off and take measurements. it's mid terms time so I've been studying. I will keep you posted. Anyone have a link to steps to remove the bumper?

[gakz]

Just did a 140mile road rally, keeping it at high RPMs and going through some twisty roads. Thing barely got warmer than 85 celsius, glad I got my intercooler.. many times it'd get up to 90 celsius before I got it. It may not give tons of performance boost doing it, BUT I know for sure it has helped keep engine temps down

[Pagz]

Front bumper removal is pretty straight forward,theres two nuts either side of your AC fans - access by removing plastic grill,two nuts either side of the IC - access through front bumper ducts,what i cant remember is if you need to remove the plastic liners infront of the wheels before sliding the bumper off - pretty sure you dont need to,so simply reach in the outer side of the liner from the wheel well and push the clip that will allow the bumper to slide forwards, that sliding braket is adjustable which allows for correction if you need it later.

[zmatt]

Thanks Pagz. Sounds pretty easy.

@Gakz, I'm also having a new pipe made from the IC to the TB at the same time that will incorporate the MAF relocation. I think I'll slap it on the end of the metal pipe on the TB. The IC wont really help with stock boost, but it will help with heat soak so you keep the power and it will help with when I get more boost.

[gakz]

Here is the intake I have, I believe its 2.5" aluminum from siliconeintakes.com; Super cheap, custom cut it all myself and had it welded up... the "MAF" side is 2 pieces with rubber coupler near the pulley (on the SLK its a real weird curve). The actual pre-supercharger intake side will be getting changed up after a while, but you can also see what I have there


http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o97/gakzjoo/SLK/DSCF1368.jpg

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o97/gakzjoo/DSCF1354.jpg

[zmatt]

That's basicalyl what I am gonna do. Moving it there removes the check engine light from the new air intake right?

[zmatt]

So I'm looking at my bank account today and I have about $600 of money to play with at the moment. That's about enough for one good mod. Either intercooler/maf relocation or shocks and springs, or maybe new wheels. what do you guys think?

[gakz]

i never had a check engine light from my intake...

[zmatt]

You already have the maf relocation, that keeps it from happening. apparently if you mod the intake without moving the maf it can read over the 5v max the maf can send and it sets a check engine light and the car runs rich trying to compensate for a perceived lean condition that isn't true. The symptoms I get make sense with this diagnosis. When I really put the hammer down and I get full boost I sometimes get it and the result is poor mpg and the smell of gas as long as the code is present. It happened the moment I changed the intake.

[gakz]

oh thats the check engine light you are talking about, Yes.. I had that and put on a 4.7V zener diode... probably affects my top-end pretty bad :/

[gakz]

Its better to actually get a professional volt limiter set-up and limit it right at 5V... I couldn't even tell you how bad it affects my car ive had it on for so long

[zmatt]

well I've read form different sources that moving the maf further down stream helps as the later M111 motors had it in a bad spot. It seems all the slk guys do it with good results. If it doesn't work then I'll look into other options. and yeah, it's annoying as hell.

[zmatt]

So I got the bumper off today and we decided that even though an intercooler can be made to fit with some work, at the boost I'm at i would see pressure drops and it would be annoying to make it fit. Instead I'm going to look into fitting an AEM water injection kit. I'll keep you guys posted as I go. We decided the current plan was as long as it is my DD I should get the injection, pulley, tune etc so i don't have to worry about tuning issues or having the motor in pieces. when I get a new DD we will probably go turbo.

[gakz]

I found the proper MAF clamp to use, its the 5V split second volt limiter. Then just use the wiring guide/diagram I and subby have on benzworld R170 section

[zmatt]

Could you link me to the part and the guide please? I have decent electrical knowledge I should be able to install it without too much trouble.

[gakz]

Part is here http://www.splitsec.com/products/vc2-5/VC2-5.htm

Thread with info on the wiring setup is http://www.benzworld.org/forums/r170-slk-class/1511444-neeeeed-help.html?highlight=zener+diode



the thread is more about putting on a zener diode and not the splitsec clamp though... but if you use the splitsec guide on how its supposed to be installed with the wiring setup in that thread, you'll be fine.


you'll also notice there is a variation between engines, 98-00 (m62 supercharger) and the 00-04 (m45 supercharger). My reference post is for the m62 s/c.

[zmatt]

Thanks alot.

[gakz]

mine is on the way so i can tell you how it works by the end of the week

[zmatt]

sweet. Who do you recommend i order from? Am I right in thinking this means i don't need to move the MAF?

[gakz]

you still should move the MAF to the position mine is if you have the 98-00 engine with the M62. This 5V limiter just keeps it from limping the supercharger when it goes over 5v.

[zmatt]

ok, so whats the point of the maf relocation then?

[gakz]

there is a turbulence factor in the airflow at, i think, 2500-3500 rpms.. It gets rid of that, some people don't notice it I guess, so its not a big deal.. ive had mine relocated for so long I couldn't tell you how it feels

[zmatt]

So I found this today
http://volvospeed.com/vs_forum/topic/140206-bosch-maf-capabilities/

Seems the the 5v limit isn't with the sensor but it's with the ECU, that makes sense to me as I haven't heard of many people outside of us complaining about this, I guess mercedes implementation doesn't have much wiggle room. Think upsolute can change this? If they could then that would be awesome.

[gakz]

Yes, you are correct... our MAF is used in a few others cars with no issues. If upsolute can change that sort of thing, that would be awesome.. but I, personally, have no experience with their abilities.

[zmatt]

well i wish they would reply to my email lol.

[cassard]

would it be of any use on a C36 ?

[zmatt]

intercoolers are only used on cars with forced induction ie: turbo or superchargers. The C36 is naturally aspirated so no. You should start with an intake, exhaust and tune. The M104 engines do take very well to turbos though. There used to be some twin turbo kits for that motor, but nobody makes them any more. You could always do what a few members have done here and have your own turbo application custom made. Then you would need an intercooler.


Also got word back form upsolute, they said custom tune was no issue and price was the same. I would need to ship my ecu to their North Carolina office. I'm waiting to hear back if they can also account for the 5v maf limit. if so a clamp wont be needed.